< Jeremiah 31 >

1 In that tyme, seith the Lord, Y schal be God to alle the kynredis of Israel; and thei schulen be in to a puple to me.
At that time, saith the LORD, will I be the God of all the families of Israel, and they shall be my people.
2 The Lord seith these thingis, The puple that was left of swerd, foond grace in desert; Israel schal go to his reste.
Thus saith the LORD, The people which were left of the sword found grace in the wilderness; even Israel, when I went to cause him to rest.
3 Fer the Lord apperide to me, and in euerlastynge charite Y louede thee; therfor Y doynge merci drow thee.
The LORD appeared of old unto me, [saying], Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee.
4 And eft Y schal bilde thee, and thou, virgyn Israel, schalt be bildid; yit thou schalt be ourned with thi tympans, and schalt go out in the cumpenye of pleieris.
Again will I build thee, and thou shalt be built, O virgin of Israel: again shalt thou be adorned with thy tabrets, and shalt go forth in the dances of them that make merry.
5 Yit thou schalt plaunte vynes in the hillis of Samarie; men plauntynge schulen plaunte, and til the tyme come, thei schulen not gadere grapis.
Again shalt thou plant vineyards upon the mountains of Samaria: the planters shall plant, and shall enjoy [the fruit thereof].
6 For whi a dai schal be, wherynne keperis schulen crye in the hil of Samarie, and in the hil of Effraym, Rise ye, and stie we in to Sion, to oure Lord God.
For there shall be a day, that the watchmen upon the hills of Ephraim shall cry, Arise ye, and let us go up to Zion unto the LORD our God.
7 For the Lord seith these thingis, Jacob, make ye ful out ioye in gladnesse, and neye ye ayens the heed of hethene men; sowne ye, synge ye, and seie ye, Lord, saue thi puple, the residues of Israel.
For thus saith the LORD, Sing with gladness for Jacob, and shout for the chief of the nations: publish ye, praise ye, and say, O LORD, save thy people, the remnant of Israel.
8 Lo! Y schal brynge hem fro the loond of the north, and Y schal gadere hem fro the fertheste partis of erthe; among whiche schulen be a blynd man, and crokid, and a womman with childe, and trauelynge of child togidere, a greet cumpeny of hem that schulen turne ayen hidur.
Behold, I will bring them from the north country, and gather them from the uttermost parts of the earth, [and] with them the blind and the lame, the woman with child and her that travaileth with child together: a great company shall they return hither.
9 Thei schulen come in wepyng, and Y schal brynge hem ayen in merci; and Y schal brynge hem bi the strondis of watris in a riytful weie, thei schulen not spurne therynne; for Y am maad a fadir to Israel, and Effraym is my gendrid sone.
They shall come with weeping, and with supplications will I lead them: I will cause them to walk by rivers of waters, in a straight way wherein they shall not stumble: for I am a father to Israel, and Ephraim is my firstborn.
10 Ye hethene men, here ye the word of the Lord, and telle ye in ylis that ben fer, and seie, He that scateride Israel, schal gadere it, and schal kepe it, as a scheepherde kepith his floc.
Hear the word of the LORD, O ye nations, and declare it in the isles afar off; and say, He that scattered Israel will gather him, and keep him, as a shepherd doth his flock.
11 For the Lord ayenbouyte Jacob, and delyuerede hym fro the hond of the myytiere.
For the LORD hath ransomed Jacob, and redeemed him from the hand of him that was stronger than he.
12 And thei schulen come, and herye in the hil of Sion; and thei schulen flowe togidere to the goodis of the Lord, on wheete, wyn, and oile, and on the fruyt of scheep, and of neet; and the soule of hem schal be as a watri gardyn, and thei schulen no more hungre.
And they shall come and sing in the height of Zion, and shall flow together unto the goodness of the LORD, to the corn, and to the wine, and to the oil, and to the young of the flock and of the herd: and their soul shall be as a watered garden; and they shall not sorrow any more at all.
13 Thanne a virgyn schal be glad in a cumpenye, yonge men and elde togidere; and Y schal turne the morenyng of hem in to ioie, and Y schal coumforte hem, and Y schal make hem glad of her sorewe.
Then shall the virgin rejoice in the dance, and the young men and the old together: for I will turn their mourning into joy, and will comfort them, and make them rejoice from their sorrow.
14 And Y schal greetli fille the soule of prestis with fatnesse, and my puple schal be fillid with my goodis, seith the Lord.
And I will satiate the soul of the priests with fatness, and my people shall be satisfied with my goodness, saith the LORD.
15 The Lord seith these thingis, A vois of weilyng, and of wepyng, and of mourenyng, was herd an hiy; the vois of Rachel biwepynge hir sones, and not willynge to be coumfortid on hem, for thei ben not.
Thus saith the LORD: A voice is heard in Ramah, lamentation, and bitter weeping, Rachel weeping for her children; she refuseth to be comforted for her children, because they are not.
16 The Lord seith these thingis, Thi vois reste of wepyng, and thin iyen reste of teeres; for whi mede is to thi werk, seith the Lord; and thei schulen turne ayen fro the lond of the enemy.
Thus saith the LORD: Refrain thy voice from weeping, and thine eyes from tears: for thy work shall be rewarded, saith the LORD; and they shall come again from the land of the enemy.
17 And hope is to thi laste thingis, seith the Lord, and thi sones schulen turne ayen to her endis.
And there is hope for thy latter end, saith the LORD; and [thy] children shall come again to their own border.
18 I heringe herde Effraym passinge ouer; thou chastisidist me, and Y am lerned as a yong oon vntemyd; turne thou me, and Y schal be conuertid, for thou art my Lord God.
I have surely heard Ephraim bemoaning himself [thus], Thou hast chastised me, and I was chastised, as a calf unaccustomed [to the yoke]: turn thou me, and I shall be turned; for thou art the LORD my God.
19 For aftir that thou conuertidist me, Y dide penaunce; and aftir that thou schewidist to me, Y smoot myn hipe; Y am schent, and Y schamede, for Y suffride the schenschipe of my yongthe.
Surely after that I was turned, I repented; and after that I was instructed, I smote upon my thigh: I was ashamed, yea, even confounded, because I did bear the reproach of my youth.
20 For Effraym is a worschipful sone to me, for he is a delicat child; for sithen Y spak of hym, yit Y schal haue mynde on hym; therfor myn entrails ben disturblid on him, Y doynge merci schal haue merci on hym, seith the Lord.
Is Ephraim my dear son? is he a pleasant child? for as often as I speak against him, I do earnestly remember him still: therefore my bowels are troubled for him; I will surely have mercy upon him, saith the LORD.
21 Ordeyne to thee an hiy totyng place, sette to thee bitternesses; dresse thin herte in to a streiyt weie, in which thou yedist; turne ayen, thou virgyn of Israel, turne ayen to these thi citees.
Set thee up waymarks, make thee guide-posts: set thine heart toward the highway, even the way by which thou wentest: turn again, O virgin of Israel, turn again to these thy cities.
22 Hou longe, douyter of vnstidfast dwellyng, art thou maad dissolut in delices? for the Lord hath maad a newe thing on erthe, a womman schal cumpasse a man.
How long wilt thou go hither and thither, O thou backsliding daughter? for the LORD hath created a new thing in the earth, A woman shall encompass a man.
23 The Lord of oostis, God of Israel, seith these thingis, Yit thei schulen seie this word in the lond of Juda, and in the citees therof, whane Y schal turne the caytifte of hem, The Lord blesse thee, thou fairnesse of riytfulnesse, thou hooli hil.
Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Yet again shall they use this speech in the land of Judah and in the cities thereof, when I shall bring again their captivity: The LORD bless thee, O habitation of justice, O mountain of holiness.
24 And Juda, and alle citees therof schulen dwelle in it togidere, erthetilieris, and thei that dryuen flockis.
And Judah and all the cities thereof shall dwell therein together; the husbandmen, and they that go about with flocks.
25 For Y fillide greetli a feynt soule, and Y haue fillid ech hungri soule.
For I have satiated the weary soul, and every sorrowful soul have I replenished.
26 Therfor Y am as reisid fro sleep, and Y siy; and my sleep was swete to me.
Upon this I awaked, and beheld; and my sleep was sweet unto me.
27 Lo! daies comen, seith the Lord, and Y schal sowe the hous of Israel and the hous of Juda with the seed of men, and with the seed of werk beestis.
Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will sow the house of Israel and the house of Judah with the seed of man, and with the seed of beast.
28 And as Y wakide on hem, to drawe vp bi the roote, and to distrie, and to scatere, and to leese, and to turmente; so Y schal wake on hem, to bilde, and to plaunte, seith the Lord.
And it shall come to pass, that like as I have watched over them to pluck up and to break down, and to overthrow and to destroy, and to afflict; so will I watch over them to build and to plant, saith the LORD.
29 In tho daies thei schulen no more seie, The fadres eeten a sour grape, and the teeth of sones weren astonyed; but ech man schal die in his wickidnesse,
In those days they shall say no more, The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge.
30 ech man that etith a sour grape, hise teeth schulen be astonyed.
But every one shall die for his own iniquity: every man that eateth the sour grapes, his teeth shall be set on edge.
31 Lo! daies comen, seith the Lord, and Y schal smyte a newe boond of pees to the hous of Israel, and to the hous of Juda;
Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah:
32 not bi the couenaunte which Y made with youre fadris, in the dai in which Y took the hond of hem, to lede hem out of the lond of Egipt, the couenaunte which thei made voide; and Y was Lord of hem, seith the Lord.
not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the LORD.
33 But this schal be the couenaunte, which Y schal smyte with the hous of Israel aftir tho daies, seith the Lord; Y schal yyue my lawe in the entrails of hem, and Y schal write it in the herte of hem, and Y schal be in to God to hem, and thei schulen be in to a puple to me.
But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the LORD; I will put my law in their inward parts, and in their heart will I write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people:
34 And a man schal no more teche his neiybore, and a man his brother, and seie, Knowe thou the Lord; for alle schulen knowe me, fro the leeste of hem `til to the mooste, seith the Lord; for Y schal be merciful to the wickidnessis of hem, and Y schal no more be myndeful on the synne of hem.
and they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the LORD: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the LORD: for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin will I remember no more.
35 The Lord seith these thingis, that yyueth the sunne in the liyt of dai, the ordre of the moone and of sterris in the liyt of the niyt, whiche disturblith the see, and the wawis therof sownen, the Lord of oostis is name to hym.
Thus saith the LORD, which giveth the sun for a light by day, and the ordinances of the moon and of the stars for a light by night, which stirreth up the sea, that the waves thereof roar; the LORD of hosts is his name:
36 If these lawis failen bifore me, seith the Lord, thanne and the seed of Israel schal faile, that it be not a folk bifore me in alle daies.
If these ordinances depart from before me, saith the LORD, then the seed of Israel also shall cease from being a nation before me for ever.
37 The Lord seith these thingis, If heuenes aboue moun be mesurid, and the foundementis of erthe bynethe be souyt out, and Y schal caste awei al the seed of Israel, for alle thingis whiche thei diden, seith the Lord.
Thus saith the LORD: If heaven above can be measured, and the foundations of the earth searched out beneath, then will I also cast off all the seed of Israel for all that they have done, saith the LORD.
38 Lo! daies comen, seith the Lord, and a citee schal be bildid to the Lord, fro the tour of Ananeel `til to the yate of the corner.
Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that the city shall be built to the LORD from the tower of Hananel unto the gate of the corner.
39 And it schal go out ouer the reule of mesure, in the siyt therof, on the hil Gareb, and it schal cumpasse Goatha,
And the measuring line shall yet go out straight onward unto the hill Gareb, and shall turn about unto Goah.
40 and al the valei of careyns, and it schal cumpasse aischis, and al the cuntrei of deth, `til to the stronde of Cedron, and til to the corner of the eest yate of horsis; the hooli thing of the Lord schal not be drawun out, and it schal no more be destried with outen ende.
And the whole valley of the dead bodies, and of the ashes, and all the fields unto the brook Kidron, unto the corner of the horse gate toward the east, shall be holy unto the LORD; it shall not be plucked up, nor thrown down any more for ever.

< Jeremiah 31 >